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WWE's Super Show-Down ultimately lived up to its billing as a super show. For Americans, it was worth waking up in the middle of the night (4 AM) to see some of the most legendary wrestlers in history take centre stage. For Australians that gathered at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, their county was featured on the show in a way that made them proud, as they undoubtedly left the arena happy.
The show was a who's who in wrestling from legends like; The Undertaker, Triple H, Shawn Michaels, and Kane to savvy veterans like AJ Styles, Daniel Bryan, and Samoa Joe to up and comers like NEW Cruiserweight Champion Buddy Murphy. Young and old wrestling fanatics alike found common-something to enjoy at Super Show-Down.
While the show undoubtedly had its moments, they weren't all good. The show relied too heavily on tag team wrestling and some of WWE characters are still lost in the shuffle, while creative finds a way to drop the proverbial ball on exceptional talent.
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Join us for another edition of The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly as we unpack the best, worst, and downright ugliest moments at WWE's Super Show-Down.
The Good - Four N' Twenty Pie Commercial
Oh, there is great joy in cheesy wrestling commercials and Four N'Twenty Pie pulled off one of the sweetest (pun intended) ever. Smackdown Superstar Naomi arrives home and is greeted by flower petals and makeshift hearts. What has Jimmy Uso done to steal her heart again? "Awww...Jimmy," the former Smackdown Women's Champion gushes.
She follows the trail of petals straight into the...bathroom where she is startled to find her husband, Jimmy Uso, enjoying a romantic bath with a delicious Four N'Twenty pie.
The commercial was absolutely hilarious and made even better when the heads of Four N'Twenty pie were immediately featured on television, as they sat front row at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. The corporate bigwigs were so overjoyed that they couldn't contain their excitement, as they began jumping for joy before the cameras just like any wrestling fans would.
The Good - AJ Styles vs Samoa Joe
The match lived up to all expectations. It needed to be brutal, needed to be violent, needed to be hard-hitting enough to cause the hair on the back of necks to stand straight up in awe. After Samoa Joe showed up at Styles' home, it had to be this way and it was. The match didn't get off to a traditional start as the two wrestlers couldn't wait for the bell to ring. They clashed on the ramp and the carnage ensued from there.
The two brutally exchanged stiff shot after stiff shot:
Samoa Joe, in particular, brutalized Styles in terrifying fashion:
Commentator Renee Young called the match the hardest hitting she had ever seen in her entire life.
Brutality wasn't all we were treated to, however. Styles wowed in his usual spectacular fashion:
In what would prove to garner himself a decisive advantage, Styles also met Samoa Joe in a place of darkness, eventually bringing out a table that badly wounded Joe's left knee:
The punishment only intensified from there:
As Styles continued to pound away on Samoa Joe he could be heard saying, "That's what you get for messing with my family." Samoa Joe's knee was blood in the water and Styles willingly played the proverbial shark. Ultimately it was the knee that cost Samoa Joe the WWE Championship and styles walked away victorious once again.
The Good - The Legends Steal The Show
The match wasn't supposed to be this good. The Undertaker is a worn 53 years old and has a bad hip. Triple H is his junior at 49; but, spends more time as a business executive than in the ring. Their cornermen, Shawn Michaels and Kane, are 53 and 51 respectively.
The four; however, have a distinct advantage over the other wrestlers on the WWE roster. Their characters are as timeless as Santa Claus or Mickey Mouse. In the heart, they never age. These four are also some of the best storytellers in wrestling history and they proved it at Super Show-Down.
Most thought the match between these two elders would last ten or fifteen minutes; but, this one lasted more than thirty minutes and not a second was boring. After Triple H showed some early disrespect to The Undertaker by putting his own hands behind his back and even attempting an Old School, The Dead Man gained a clear early advantage and hit an Old School off the top rope:
The two didn't live off their persona or history. This one was particularly brutal and included tables, stiff shots, and this on the unforgiving arena floor:
Shawn Michaels was instrumental in Triple H's victory; but, when Kane tried to even the odds, he was given the table treatment:
Ultimately DX was too much for The Undertaker to handle & he succumbed to several Shawn Michaels Super Kicks and a Pedigree.
After the match things looked like they would be resolved; but, ultimately the Brothers of Destruction weren't having any of it, as Triple H ended up being the recipient of an Undertaker Tombstone and Shawn Michals was choke slammed through the announcer's table:
The Good - Australian Fans Go Home Happy
Australia hosted Super Show-Down and Australia deserved the enormous love it received from the WWE. First, the IIconics came to the ring and the heels received a huge ovation from their home country. The duo took the microphone and while most were expecting a heel promo to generate heat, the two talked about what an honour it was to return to Australia, their home. Then they went into the ring and scored the upset victory over Naomi and Asuka, as the crowd roared in approval.
The Cedric Alexander era is over courtesy of Australian native Buddy Murphy. In what was a Match of the Night candidate, Buddy Murphy and Cedric Alexander gave their all; however, it was Murphy who edged out Alexander to become the new Cruiserweight Champion and the Melbourne crowd went wild.
The Bad - Creative Quagmire
WWE Creative continues to drop the proverbial ball on some of the company's top talent. This trend continued at Super Show-Down.
In the Becky Lynch/Charlotte Flair bout, Lynch is written as the heel; but, continues to be received by audiences the world over as a babyface. Her entrance music is also an upbeat babyface theme with loads of energy. Charlotte Flair, meanwhile, is one of the best female heels in the wrestling business and she keeps being pushed as a face, despite the audience continually booing her. It was never more evident than in the Smackdown Women's Championship match where every blow Charlotte hit was booed and ever Lynch his was cheered.
The WWE continues to miss opportunities with Bobby Lashley's character. First, why wasn't Lio Rush in Australia? Is he is Lashley's manager than he should be there and treated as a key component to his character, not an afterthought at a show that his been marketed as the Australian WrestleMania. After the match ended, Lashley was presented with a perfect opportunity to turn heel on John Cena and enter into a feud that would be beneficial to both men; however, that didn't happen.
Then there's Asuka, who once had a 914 match win streak. She has been relegated to mid-card status when she does actually appear on WWE television. Tonight she was simply Naomi's co-dancer. Even announcer Cody Graves noticed and commented, "I don't know how this bodes for Asuka's career. I liked when she used to just kick people and not dance so much."
The Bad - Tag Team Galore
Week after week WWE television is inundated with tag team match, most of which don't matter in the grand scheme of things. Even the tag team division on both Smackdown and RAW are riddled with teams that seem quickly put together. There are numerous partnerships that simply don't make sense creatively; however, WWE, in usual head-scratching fashion, continues to head down this path.
Super Show-Down featured ten matches and five of those (50%) were tag team matches. Only one of those had any tag team championship implications and only some of those matches featured any teams with long-time partners.
Naomi & Asuka paired, as did Ronda Rousey & The Bella Twins. Braun Strowman teamed with Drew McIntyre and Dolph Ziggler. John Cena teamed with Bobby Lashley and for some reason, the WWE looks at Kevin Owens and thinks, 'Musical sidekick.' The oddly paired units add to the creative convolution that has plagued the WWE for some time. It's high time that the WWE finds its way out of the creative quagmire it currently finds itself in; but, that won't happen apart from a revamped
The Ugly - Daniel Bryan vs The Miz
What happened? That's what many fans thought about the conclusion of the Super Show-Down match between Daniel Bryan and The Miz. The match started at a frantic pace and ended mysteriously in rushed fashion as Bryan eeked out a victory with an inside cradle.
Was the match rushed? The pay-per-view was scheduled for five hours time and only went four, so it's hard to believe these two were told to speed things up for Undertaker and Triple H. It's possible that The Miz was supposed to kick out of that inside the cradle and for whatever reason did not.
Why that occurred, we don't know and likely never will; but, this feud should have been a Feud of The Year candidate. Instead, we are left with a trio of lacklustre matches and a dud of a finish.
